Unofficial Translation (CCHR Version) 1 Law on the Status of Judges and Prosecutors of the Kingdom of Cambodia Chapter One Joint Provisions Article 1 This law determines the status of judges and prosecutors and other principles related to judges and prosecutor, aiming at ensuring the independence of the judiciary in accordance with the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia. and the Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary adopted by the United Nations. Article 2 This law applies to all judges and prosecutors in the Kingdom of Cambodia except otherwise described in other specific laws. Article 3 Technical terms in this law are defined as following: - Judges refer to the sitting judges including trial judges and investigating judges - Prosecutors refer to deputy prosecutors, prosecutors, deputy prosecutor general and prosecutor general - Judiciary refers to judges and prosecutors. Article 4 All persons recruited to serve their career as judges and prosecutors shall be competent, and honest with good morals. Article 5 During their career, judges may be appointed as prosecutors, and prosecutors may be appointed as judges. Article 6 The security of judges and prosecutors and their families shall be guaranteed in case of necessity at the request of the concerned person. Judges and prosecutors shall not be subjected to criminal or civil charges for their decisions made in their competent framework and duties as judges or prosecutors. This principle shall not apply when judges or prosecutors use their decision to severely and with bad intention to abuse their power and duties provided by law.
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KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA - Sithi€¦ · - Prosecutors refer to deputy prosecutors, prosecutors, deputy prosecutor general and prosecutor general - Judiciary refers to judges and prosecutors.
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Unofficial Translation (CCHR Version)
1
Law on the Status of Judges and Prosecutors
of the Kingdom of Cambodia
Chapter One
Joint Provisions
Article 1
This law determines the status of judges and prosecutors and other principles related to
judges and prosecutor, aiming at ensuring the independence of the judiciary in accordance
with the Constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia. and the Basic Principles on the
Independence of the Judiciary adopted by the United Nations.
Article 2
This law applies to all judges and prosecutors in the Kingdom of Cambodia except otherwise
described in other specific laws.
Article 3
Technical terms in this law are defined as following:
- Judges refer to the sitting judges including trial judges and investigating judges
- Prosecutors refer to deputy prosecutors, prosecutors, deputy prosecutor general and
prosecutor general
- Judiciary refers to judges and prosecutors.
Article 4
All persons recruited to serve their career as judges and prosecutors shall be competent, and
honest with good morals.
Article 5
During their career, judges may be appointed as prosecutors, and prosecutors may be
appointed as judges.
Article 6
The security of judges and prosecutors and their families shall be guaranteed in case of
necessity at the request of the concerned person.
Judges and prosecutors shall not be subjected to criminal or civil charges for their decisions
made in their competent framework and duties as judges or prosecutors. This principle shall
not apply when judges or prosecutors use their decision to severely and with bad intention to
abuse their power and duties provided by law.
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Article 7
All judges and prosecutors shall be in the central administrative framework of the Ministry of
Justice and can be appointed to function at the Ministry of Justice. When performing their
duties at the Ministry of Justice, judges shall request authorization from the Supreme Council
of Magistracy.
When performing their functions at the Ministry of Justice, judges and prosecutors shall be
under the status of prosecutor and shall receive their salary and duty allowances in the same
way as prosecutors who are in duty at the prosecution of the adjudicate court. In case the
salary and duty allowances are different, the concerned person has the right to choose the
higher salary or duty allowances.
Chapter Two
Judges
Part 1
General Provisions
Article 8
All judges shall make decisions impartially, based upon legal principles, without pressure,
threat or intimidation, or order whether direct or indirect, from any party to the case or any
other person.
Article 9
Judges shall be appointed to perform their duties at any particular court for a term of four
years.
No judge on duty as specified in paragraph 1 of this Article may be transferred to any other
place without their prior consent, even though that place offers a higher position than the one
currently held. However, the Supreme Council of Magistracy may transfer a judge to any
other places to perform his/her duties when he or she is subjected to a 2nd degree disciplinary
sanction as stated in Article 55 of this Law or as needed for justice benefit.
Part Two
Ranks and Grades
Article 10
The cadre of judges is composed of three ranks:
- Senior Judge
- Junior Judge
- Subordinate Judge
Article 11
The rank of senior judges, junior judges, and subordinate judges shall be determined by a
Royal Degree.
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Part Three
Uniform
Article 12
The uniform of judges at all levels consists of two types:
- Uniform for hearings and uniform when on duty
- Official uniform for national ceremonies
These uniforms shall be determined by a Royal Decree at the request of the Supreme Council
of Magistracy.
Article 13
The uniform for judges at hearings is a gown.
The uniform for judges when on duty otherwise that at hearing is clothes or other identifiers.
The use of clothes or other identifiers shall be determined by the Supreme Council of
Magistracy.
The uniform that all judges are required to wear during the parade or other national
ceremonies, if officially required, shall be the formal clothing.
Part Four
Salaries, Allowances, Bonus, and Annual Leave
Article 14
Judges are eligible to receive salaries calculated in accordance with their ranks and grades,
the duty allowances, other allowances and the bonus as provided by law.
Article 15
Salaries, duty allowances and other allowances such as mission allowance, renting
(residential) allowance, livelihood allowance, allowance for working in far remote areas or
hazardous places, traveling and accommodation allowances, stop-over allowances, medical
and hospital allowances, and allowances for long-term treatment of chronicle illness shall be
determined by Sub-Decree.
Article 16
Judges are entitled to 30 days of annual leave in addition to the vacation determined by the
government. The period within which any judge may apply for annual leave shall be counted
from 01 January of the year.
Annual leave may be applied for whether as a single leave or as many instance of leave
during the year. This annual leave may be valid till the end of February of next year.
Annual leave shall be requested to the president of the court for at least three months prior to
the leave.
Women judges are entitled to ninety days maternity leave.
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During the above leave period, judges shall enjoy the salaries, duty allowances and other
allowances.
Article 17
Any judges who have performed their duty for two years without any interruption, or with a
few interruptions, but the performance is still managed to complete a 2-year term, he/she is
eligible for sick leave of six months without salary deduction.
If the sick leave is extended from six months to one year, a half of the salary shall be
deducted. If the sick leave is extended to more than one year,( the judge shall receive his/her
retirement pension by seniority or by proportional or by a full withdrawal as specified by the
Article 45 of this law ) the judges shall be request for blank salary as specified by the Article
45 of this law. If he/she is not eligible for the above rights, he/she shall be considered as
disability as specified by the Article 66 of this law.
Any judges who fall sick and request the Ministry of Justice for sick leave are required to
provide medical certification. However, the Ministry of Justice may appoint an expert
physician to examine at any time if it deems necessary.
Article 18
Any judge who did not use their annual leave may transfer this annual leave to their sick
leave without deduction of their salary.
Part Five
Selection as Judge Students
Article 19
It is permissible for any candidate who meets all of the following conditions to take the
examination for the selection of judge students:
1. Must have Khmer nationality
2. Must be not more than 35 years of age for student candidates and must not be more
than 40 years of age for candidates from civil servant as of the date of the examination
3. Must hold at least a Bachelor in Law
4. Must not have been convicted of a misdemeanor or a felony
5. Must have sufficient fitness to fulfill the duty
Article 20
The determination of the amount of judge students to be selected shall be made by the Prakas
of the Minister of Justice following the consultation with the Supreme Council of Magistracy.
Article 21
Candidates who take the entrance examination for judge student shall receive professional
training organized by the Ministry of Justice.
The organization and functioning of the professional training shall be determined by the
Prakas of the Minister of Justice.
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Article 22
The form, process, date and venue of entrance examination for judge students shall be
determined by the Prakas of the Minister of Justice.
Article 23
The examination for selection into the cadre of judges may also be conducted through an
internal examination from among the government officers and clerks who hold a Bachelor in
Law, have at least 5 years of working experience in legal and judicial filed and whose age is
not older than 45 years old as of the date of the examination. Lawyers who hold a Bachelor in
Law, have at least 5 years of working experience in legal and judicial filed can also register
for the examination as stated in paragraph 1 above if their age is not older than 45 years old
as of the date of the examination.
Candidates who pass the examination for selection into the cadre of judge as provided in
paragraph 1 and 2 above shall receive the professional training organized by the Ministry of
Justice.
The form and process of the internal examination for selection into the cadre of judges and
the organization and functioning of the professional training shall be determined by the
Prakas of the Minister of Justice following the consultation with all members of the Supreme
Council of Magistracy.
Part Six
Apprenticeship and Full Appointment to the Cadre
Article 24
The judge students who have been selected based on Article 19 and Article 23 of this law and
who have successfully finished the professional training shall be appointed by Royal Decree
as a name of deputy judge of first instant court that have a period for one year. The duration
of internship shall be counted from the date of appointment as an intern judge.
The procedure of internship and competence of the intern judge shall be determined by
Prakas of Minister of Justice after consultant with the member of Supreme Council of
Magistracy.
The appointment of intern judge enables to organize the salary and seniority of intern judge.
Article 25
After completing the internship, the intern-judge shall be appointed into the cadre of judges
as a full subordinate judge of the first grade.
The Supreme Council of Magistracy may decide to extend the period of internship for
another one year for any intern judge who was not successful in undertaking their internship
or if they were absence from their internship for a period of more than thirty days in total.
In the event that the intern judge is absent for over thirty days without authorization or when
the intern judge was not successful again during/after the extended period, he or she shall be
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removed from the list of the cadre of judges following the decision by the Supreme Council
of Magistracy.
Article 26
Any intern who is unfit or who has insufficient health to perform their functions according to
the conditions set by law, or who has misconduct in the performance of their duties may be
removed from the list of the cadre of judges at any time following a decision made by the
Supreme Council of Magistracy.
The removal or full appointment into the cadre of judges shall be decided within a period not
exceeding three months after the completion of the internship. The full appointment into the
cadre of judges shall be effective for both the preparation of salary and the seniority, which is
counted from the date of completion of the internship.
Part Seven
Promotion in Grade and in Rank
Article 27
The promotion in grade and in rank shall be carried out either on the basis of the turn of
selection and the turn of seniority in accordance with the list drawn up for each grade and
each rank.
The conditions for promotion in grade or in rank through the turn of selection and the turn of
seniority shall be determined by a Royal Decree.
Article 28
The promotion of the judges in grade and in rank shall be based on:
Correctly complying with working discipline;
Good achievements (performance);
Good conduct/behavior and good morals which do not harm the honour of
magistracy;
Receiving trainings from the Royal Academy for Judicial Professions or having
finished study at the tertiary educational institutions;
Working in any remote areas, health-affected areas or dangerous areas.
During the duty performance, the judges trying to get an additional study and receiving a
post-graduate degree shall be encouraged with one grade promotion.
Article 29
For each grade and rank of the hierarchy, the number of judges planned to be promoted in
grade or in rank for each year shall be determined in accordance with the requirement of
work and the national budget plan.
Article 30
Any judge who is in the same rank may be promoted only one grade higher each time.
If necessary, judges can be promoted in rank through examination.
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Article 31
In the first week of January every year, each judge shall receive a sheet of personal record in
which the judge must complete a series of questionnaires.
The personal record shall be rated with the scores on this sheet by giving clear comments or
reasons.
The scores shall be rated as following:
1. Vice-Presidents and judges of Court of First Instance shall be scored by the Presidents
of the courts.
2. Judges and Vice-President of the Court of Appeal shall be scored by the President of
the Court of Appeal.
3. Presidents of the Court of First Instance, President of the Court of Appeal, judges of
the Supreme Court, and the Vice-President of the Supreme Court shall be scored by
the President of the Supreme Court.
4. Any judge who is transferred to work in other institution shall be scored by the head
of the concerned institution.
Article 32
Only a judge who has worked in his or her grade or rank for at least two years as of every
April 13 each year can be registered in the list of promotion.
Article 33
The composition of the Commission of promotion in rank and grade comprises of:
Secretary of State of the MoJ Chairman
Vice President of the Supreme Court Vice Chairman
Deputy Prosecutor-General of the Supreme Court Vice Chairman
President of the Court of Appeal Member
Prosecutor-General of the Court of Appeal Member
President of the Municipal Court Member
Prosecutor of the Municipal Court Member
The Secretary General of the SCM Secretary
The Minister of Justice may appoint any other compositions if necessary to assist this
Commission.
Article 34
The list of proposed judges for promotion in grade for each rank shall be prepared based on
seniority of service in accordance with the list concerning each grade.
This list shall be posted at all adjudicated courts for notification to all the concerned persons.
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Article 35
If any judge, whose seniority of service is due for proposed promotion in grade or in rank but
whose name is not registered in the above list of the promotion, he/she may make a complaint
to the Minister of Justice not later than 30 days from the date of receiving notification on the
list of proposed promotion in grade and in rank. If this period is expired, such complaint shall
be considered null and void.
Article 36
The sheet of personal record of all registered judges for promotion in each grade and the
sheet of personal record of those judges who failed to get promotion and who brought a
complaint shall be sent to the Commission of promotion in rank and in grade as specified by
Article 33 of this law not later than the second week of February every year.
Article 37
The Chairman of the Promotion Commission shall convene its members for a meeting.
The Commission shall hold its meeting before the traditional Khmer New Year.
Article 38
After considering the sheet of personal record of each judge and making decision over the
complaints and after listening to a full explanation of the Chairman, each member of the
Commission shall give mark from zero to twenty to each proposed judge. The registration of
the proposed judges into the list shall be made based on the quality level of the result of the
total scores. If two proposed judges obtain equal scores, the one who is older shall be
registered first on the list.
Article 39
The Commission in charge of grade and rank promotion shall prepare the list in accordance
with the cohort (intake) of judges who are eligible for promotion and in accordance with the
order of precedence in the list and submit it to the Supreme Council of Magistracy for
examining and making decision. The general secretariat of the SCM shall prepare the list of
judges who are put forward for promotion by the Supreme Council of Magistracy to the
Minister of Justice in order to prepare a Royal Decree to submit it to the King.
Article 40
Any judge who is under disciplinary investigation or under criminal charge shall not be
registered in the list of grade and rank promotion during the period of disciplinary
investigation or criminal charge.
Article 41
In case the proposed judge is not promoted whether in grade or in rank, he/she has a priority
to be registered first in the list of promotion for next year.
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Article 42
The promotion either in grade or in rank, the augmentation of salary, and the seniority of
service shall be counted from April 13 of each year.